The Last Days of Gush Katif

A personal diary.

My husband, Yaakov, and I get up early and drive down to Atzmona to babysit our granddaughters. Our daughter, Naama, is part of a Gush Katif women's theater group and today is their last performance -- at a conference in Bar Ilan University. Her husband, Avner, a career officer and captain in the IDF, will be home late. She takes her 3-month-old son, Oz Naftali, with her, as she is still breastfeeding him.

I think how appropriate his name Naftali is -- for it is after my father, who died this year, who loved to travel. Oz Naftali has also been all over Israel with his mother's theater group. They perform an original play that expresses their doubts, their fears and their faith in these troubled times.

The community of Atzmona looks like it does every other day. There are no moving containers, no unusual activity. No one in Atzmona is packing. This is a community with no televisions and no secular newspapers. Many of the residents are teachers in yeshivot and schools. The others are farmers who are a part of Atzmona's successful agricultural community. Their farming industry has paid off well, but they live modestly, with mid-size homes surrounded by lawns and flowers. But some of the homes, including our daughters, have black indentations in the outside walls -- from the shrapnel of mortars that have fallen here. One fell 20 feet from our daughter's home, among the blooming yellow alemandra plants.

We drive with our granddaughters, Tehila and Shirel, to Neveh Dekalim, seven minutes away. Our plan was to take them to the petting zoo, but there is a sign that it is closed, some people say, because of the nine days leading up to Tisha B'Av, when one doesn't partake of entertainment. But as a former camp director, I know that zoos are among the few activities allowed, and I suspect it is closed because some of the animals have already been transferred to other zoos. My suspicions are confirmed by a friend who lives in Neveh Dekalim, who tells me how they gently tied orange ribbons around the donkeys' ears before they sent them off to Kibbutz Saad, so everyone would know they were from Gush Katif.

The lawns and shopping center are full of vibrant young people, reading, playing basketball, eating and just talking. It is a blazingly hot day. The local ice cream and coffee shop, well air-conditioned, is brimming with soldiers, local residents and visiting journalists with laptops. We stop in at the local medical center to visit the girls' other grandmother, Ruti Cohen, whose sister and brother-in-law were shot dead three weeks ago by a Palestinian policeman on Tzir Kissufim, the main road leading in and out of Gush Katif. This is Ruti's first day back at work. As she holds Shirel on her lap, we watch a dentist wheeling the contents of his clinic out of the center. A doctor and several psychologists who have come from Jerusalem and Beit Shemesh to volunteer their time look in and say hello. Magazines about the Land of Israel are on the tables in the waiting area, along with toys and dolls.

While my granddaughters climb and slide, I look up at the sky, and wonder what God wants from us.

We continue to a large and beautiful playground. While my granddaughters climb and slide, I lie on my back, look up at the sky, and wonder what God wants from us. I look at the sun and the sea, and at the immense beauty that has been created here, from out of the sand dunes.

Later that day, when it is cool enough to go outside, I play with Tehila and Shirel and their friends. We sit on their grass and catch imaginary fish, make imaginary honey, prepare imaginary challas for Shabbat. But when I suggest that we (pretend to) pick oranges and make orange juice, they run to a bush with red flowers, pick some branches, pull off some of the red flowers, pretend they are oranges and suck the nectar. They tell me this is a trick they have learned on their way to pre-school - to suck the nectar from the red flowers.

Later, the farmers from Atzmona drop off a large sack of potatoes in front of every home -- a gift. The girls make a game out of pulling the potatoes out of the sack, one by one, and lining them up in front of the kitchen door. This keeps them busy for about 30 minutes. Such are the activities of children growing up among farmers, with no TV.

Naama, Oz Naftali and Avner come home together. Yaakov and I have already fed and bathed the girls. I have made Tehila five pigtails, as she asked, and a little braid for Shirel. They hide under the sheets and jump out at their father. I take Oz Naftali out for a long walk to help him quiet down, and stop to visit a friend who is the sister of the rebbetzin of Atzmona. Chaya is a parent advisor and she tells me how she is trying to explain to the women that it is "okay" to put some cherished objects into a backpack at least, even if they don't want to pack, that they should save the children's special collections and other items, in case they are lost when the soldiers come to pack.

I fall asleep broken hearted.

Wednesday, August 10

I get up before the others and decide to drive to every single community in Gush Katif that I haven't visited yet. As I make my way from one to the other, I see that some look like any other day, and a few, like Pe-at Sadeh, have moving containers in front of the homes, or the homes have already been left, and there is orange graffiti on them, anti-disengagement, or saying "I love you Gush Katif." I see a horse in one of the yards, whose owners have not yet left.

I drive along the seashore to Rafiah Yam, where I know the Atia family. I knock on their door, to say hello. There is no answer but a reserve officer named Dan tells me that they must be sleeping. There are boxes in front of the house. Dan invites me around the corner to the soldiers' quarters where he has the Atia's cell phone number. While I wait for it, I see that this makeshift soldiers' quarters has religious books and pamphlets lying around. Dan is from a moshav in the Negev and he says, "It is hard, it is hard to be here now."

As I leave, I stop the car, and salute in the direction of the settlement.

I continue to B'dolach, Gan-Or, Gadid? As I enter each community, I nod and say hello to the soldier on guard. As I leave, I stop the car, and salute in the direction of the settlement. I choose to salute because they are like soldiers, who have been sent here by Israeli governments. I, too, was sent to Efrat in Gush Etzion by the Israeli government. I salute them as one soldier to another.

I reach Shirat Hayam and Kfar Yam, where hundreds of families and young people have created tent cities. I see a young neighbor from Efrat, Rivka Bedein, who is studying medical clowning, and has come to entertain the children.

I drive back to my daughter's home and we get ready to leave. At noon, we will be attending a brit mila in Ganei Tal. A new grandson has been born to other in-laws who live there - the Asis family. I whisper to Naama as I hug her, "I am so proud of you." She, Israeli that she is, replies, "Stop, Ima, you're embarrassing me." As I leave Naama's home for what I fear is the last time, I turn around and exit backwards, like in a synagogue. This, I think to myself, is like the Temple in Jerusalem. I kiss the mezuzah as I step out. I am leaving a sanctuary of faith and love.

Shirel, who just ran through someone's sprinkler and got wet (yes, they are still watering the lawn one week before the expulsion), has taken off all her clothes. She is only three years old and I laugh as she runs, naked, all the way to our car, enjoying her freedom and the fact that her mother, unlike me, isn't thrilled about her lack of attire.

We drive to Ganei Tal and see a crowd that is not only friends and family, but supporters who have used the excuse of a brit mila to enter the Gush. The baby's grandfather tells us that he has made five trips that day back and forth to Ashkelon, to which he has transferred his greenhouses of geraniums and spices. Everyone, even those of great faith, recognize that it may be the last brit mila in Gush Katif, and the atmosphere is heavily mixed with joy and sorrow. The lawns surrounding the synagogue are filled with well-wishers, the tables laden with cold drinks and watermelon slices. The child is named Amichai -- "my nation lives."

During the festive lunch (at tables decorated with orange ribbons and napkins), the rabbi of the community, Gabi Kadosh, the baby's other grandfather, says, "I invite you all to join us here for Amichai's Shabbat hatan (the Shabbat before a wedding)!" One of the caterer's workers rolls his eyes in disbelief. But I say to the people at my table, "Amichai's father married young -- at 19. And I remember how the children of Gush Etzion returned to their homes after the Six Day War in 1967, 19 years after they were driven out in 1948 when Gush Etzion fell to the Jordanians. These children, too, will return one day."

I finish my little speech of hope and Hanan Porat enters the hall, to wish the family mazal tov. Hanan was the leader of the Gush Etzion children who returned in 1967, and I declare it to be an omen that my prophecy was true, and that the children of Gush Katif will return, one day, to this strip of land.

Friday, August 12

We leave for a day and are now returning for Shabbat Chazon, the Shabbat before Tisha B'Av, the Shabbat during which we read Parashat Devarim, which tells how Land of Israel that was given to us. We spend Shabbat in Ganei Tal. Naama is also there with her family, as is another daughter, Noa, also married to a boy who grew up in Ganei Tal; they have decided to spend this Shabbat with his parents as well. Our daughter, Ephrat, 22, has been in Gush Katif for a week already and Matanya, 15, comes in with us. We have "passes" to be in Gush Katif till midnight Saturday night. I express the desire to leave, therefore, after midnight -- my tiny protest against the government. Ephrat and Matanya say they will be staying on. As it turns out, there is shooting on Tzir Kissufim Saturday night and we delay our leaving till the next day.

Friday night, the air conditioning in the synagogue shuts off as prayers are about to begin. There are several hundred visitors in this community of about 70 families, and the hundreds move outside to pray, in a plaza surrounded by trees, where wedding feasts are usually held. Naama and Avner, whose chuppah took place on the grass overlooking the seashore, held their wedding feast here, as well. I cannot believe that after this week they will not be able to return to the site of their chuppah, to the site of their wedding. The prayers are so powerful, so deeply wrenching, that I feel we are standing on the eve of Yom Kippur. I half expect, after the reciting of "Shema Yisrael," to hear the congregation add the next line, "Baruch shem kavod?" aloud, like on the eve of Kol Nidre, not quietly, like the rest of the year.

The next morning, there are tears in shul. Nobody can escape the thought that this is probably the last Shabbat in Ganei Tal.

The next morning, there are tears in shul. Nobody can escape the thought that this is probably the last Shabbat in Ganei Tal, though most people still speak with a tone of hope, praying for a miracle. The rabbi speaks from the pulpit about the power of miracles and how God can do anything, but his final words are, "In the coming days, let us feel also a sense of joy, and give thanks for all the good we have received."

The man to close the ark after the returning of the Torah is Zalman Deutsch of Alon Shvut, the architect who built this shul more than 20 years ago. He pulls the curtain closed and leans forward to kiss it gently. During the repeat of the Musaf Amidah, the kohanim ascend the steps at the front, turn and bless the congregation. I have a son-in-law up there and I watch him and his brother and father as they face the ark, after the blessing. The kohanim remain up there for longer than usual, unable to part, knowing this may have been the last time they bless their friends and neighbors.

A grand Kiddush follows, the cakes and kugels provided by supporters throughout Israel who have sent their love and food to Gush Katif. A man announces that the Kiddush next Shabbat will be on the lawn of one of the residents. People cheer, knowing that there may not be another Shabbat here in Ganei Tal. There are tears and laughter throughout the day.

There are two concepts that keep guiding me and that I think we have to keep in our minds. One is our own hishtadlut, doing whatever we can to avert the decree of expulsion. The other is that God has His plan.

These two concepts are not contradictory. The Holy One can do anything.

Shabbat afternoon Rabbi Elisha Vishlitzky of Jerusalem gives a class in the Cohen's home, in memory of her sister and brother-in-law, Rachel and Dov Kol. He tells the story that appears in Isaiah, chapter 38. Isaiah says to King Chizkiyahu, "You will die and not live" and the sages of the Midrash explain: "not live" means also in the next world. Chizkiyahu asks why, and Isaiah says, "Because you did not marry."

Chizkiyahu explains, "I did not marry because sons will come forth from me who are not honest." (He knew that Menashe the evil king would come forth from him.) Isaiah responds, "Who are you to make the accountings of the Holy One? You must do what you must do, and God will do as He wishes."

Isaiah answers, "The decree has already been made. It won't help that you take my daughter." Chizkiyahu replies, "Ben Amotz (Isaiah)! Stop your prophesying and leave!" Why? "Because this is what I have received from my father's house -- even when the sword is against a person's throat, he should not despair!"

The second story Rabbi Vishlitzky told was about King David. It is from 2-Samuel, ch. 24. The short version: There was a plague, everyone was dying (not a great time to be dealing with real estate), yet King David bought the location of the Holy Temple, and the plague was stopped.

Rabbi Vishlitzky, who has been in touch with the Gush Katif community throughout the last year, entreated people: "Stay with us, even if you send out your possessions in advance and sleep on mattresses, stay here. Do not despair." But at the same time, he speaks of the spirit, the faith of the people of Gush Katif, "that will go on throughout the land," the unspoken words being, "wherever you will be."

Saturday night, Tisha B'Av begins and we listen to the reading of Lamentations which describes the destruction of both Holy Temples. The symbolism is overwhelming. Again, the plaza is filled with young people and old, mothers under trees with babies, like in days of old. Everyone is struck by the words in Chapter 5 -- "Our inheritance has been turned over the strangers, our homes to aliens."

Sunday, August 14

Let no one tell you that the people who are packing up their belongings are leaving "willingly" as the press is trying to paint it. We know one family that was packing, even, appropriately, on Tisha B'Av, as a sign of the destruction of the Temple. They planned to leave at the last minute, but decided they did not want to leave even a light bulb for the Palestinians to loot. The father of the home, alluding to a biblical verse, said, "They have murdered and they will also inherit?" Ruti Cohen, on the other hand, said to me, "I will walk out of here with only two Shabbat candlesticks and a photograph [of Rachel and Dov]."

We do not know the ways of God. But the togetherness and sanctification of God's name over the last year, must count for something.

We do not know the ways of God. But the togetherness and sanctification of God's name over the last year, must count for something. One area in which we've already witnessed the result of this Kiddush Hashem is in the changed tone of many of the TV reporters.

Many reporters join the hundreds of residents at the Gush Katif cemetery, where 48 people - many of them victims of terror -- are buried and will have to be exhumed. They stand under the blazing sun and pray, and sing songs pleading for salvation.

Monday, August 15

My husband and I have left Gush Katif but have stayed in close contact with our children and other relatives there. The people of Ganei Tal, until then considered a suburban, boomer-aged community that would go quietly, block the entrance to the moshav. The army actually has to turn around and decides to give the expulsion notices later. An officer from the Golani brigade, now a civilian and staying in Morag, meets his former commander who has come to give expulsion notices. He bursts into tears and asks, "How can you do this? Our enemy is over there (pointing to Khan Yunis). We fought shoulder to shoulder. They have been killing us. How can you throw us out. We love you?" The senior officer embraces him and tries to hold back his own tears.

In Netzarim, a strongly religious settlement, it is business as usual. People continue to build several new houses and to plant trees. There is a joke going around that, when the miracle happens and a feast of thanksgiving takes place, the people from Netzarim won't understand what it's all about because they never acknowledged the disengagement to begin with.

A woman from Ganei Tal is asked by a reporter, "What will you do when soldiers enter your house and tell you that you have to leave?" "I will give them a history lesson," she answers.

The youth are everywhere, especially in Neveh Dekalim. The army cannot control them. They did not know what awaited them. Even the youth from the northern settlements of Gaza, like Alei Sinai, mostly secular, from which some residents have left, have barricaded themselves and refuse to go.

A professor of psychology from Ben Gurion University is interviewed by Israel TV. She says that the previous week she examined both adults and youth in Gush Katif. Her comment on the youth: "They care about the country. They care about the army. They care about democracy. And there is one way is which they are especially different from the secular youth we usually see: They don't care about money."

Tuesday, August 16

Avi Farhan is interviewed on the radio. When Israel gave the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt in 1983, he was uprooted from Yamit and walked all the way to Jerusalem. Now he is about to be expelled from Alei Sinai. Farhan says, "I cannot transplant a tree twice -- once when I move into temporary housing and then again when we move into another permanent house. Any agronomist will tell you that when a tree is uprooted twice, it will die. Except for the olive tree. It can survive a second uprooting. I hope that my children will be like the olive tree."

The day has passed with clashes in Neveh Dekalim and elsewhere. There is much discussion on the news about the "illegals", mostly -- but not exclusively -- teenagers, who have managed to sneak into Gush Katif. They number in the thousands. A few of them get out of hand and burn or puncture tires. Some people pack, others live as usual. There are complaints from communities that have been split up, and even some of those -- particularly from the northern settlements -- who have gone willingly, have had a rude awakening by the shoddy, tiny caravans to which they were sent.

I speak to Ruti and to Naama in the course of the day. Naama is busy, taking the girls from activity to activity. Volunteers have poured into all the settlements to help with the children.

By nightfall, the people left in Gush Katif -- and it is still the majority, even though they have been told they will lose one third of their compensation -- await with trembling the knock on the door. For on Wednesday morning, the real expulsion will begin.

The opinions expressed in the comment section are the personal views of the commenters. Comments are moderated, so please keep it civil.

Visitor Comments: 22

(22)
y'hoshua halevi,
August 23, 2005 12:00 AM

precious jews of gush katif!!!

these kinds of pieces touch the heart and are necessary. people need to feel what's happening and then hopefully they will better understand. these precious jews of gush katif made greenhouses that supplied the best vegetables, and they employed arabs. only goodness and kindness they did, they did not hurt anyone. please let us all work and pray for the return of all the preciuous jews of gush katif!!

(21)
shuli,
August 22, 2005 12:00 AM

tears too late

i read this article today and it was one of my first exposures to the jewish point of view on gush katif. before now i have basicly only known what i hear on the radio (after all, living in america and all, it seems like whats happening in israel sometimes is a world away). and so i could barely relate to what i was hearing from the non-jewish reporters. but now i read this article and tears were streaming down my face and i started to say tehilim and i knew hashem was listening to my teffilos.... but i am afraid it is too late. the disengagement already happened and i did nothing to stop it. thank you anyways for sharing ur story with me, because no teffilos, even if late, are gone unanswered. i hope and wish that my teffilos along with all of klol yisroel will bring about the final redemption!

(20)
Anonymous,
August 21, 2005 12:00 AM

It is indeed sad to read of the expulsions that are beginning to occur in the Jewish settlements in Gaza. What a pity that innocent people, particurarly women and children will be displaced as a result of the dismentling program initiated by Prime Minister Sharon.

As a person from the Pacific I have confidence and faith that Jews, being the ingenious people they are will aptly look for ways to solvce their problem sooner than one may think. I also encourage that this ingenuity, not as conspicious amongst your brethren the Palestinains, be used to promote better dialogue and understanding amongst Jews and Palestinians.

Nothing will avail better than to place complete trust in God who enables and makes all things possible. The Jews and Palestinians should be better disposed to understanding God and hence to place complete faith in Him. I encourage both the Jews and Palestinains people to be a shinning example for the rest of mankind to lead them to the path of God both in words and in deeds. God is a God of Peace and not an Author of confrontation, strife and turmoil. Can the Jews and the Palestinians please see this simple truth?

(19)
Joy Heylen,
August 21, 2005 12:00 AM

Brilliant

I am reading this at midnight in Toowoomba, Australia, not Jewish (as far as I know) - unable to sleep -unable to imagine how it must be for everyone - my tears and prayers are with you all - G-d will avenge - you are the apple of His eye. Shalom

(18)
Pola Lubarov,
August 21, 2005 12:00 AM

Toby Klein

Toby Klein, thank you for your diary, It is a very powerful peace. It made me cry, I can feel the pain of the people. Jewish people are chosen to go and live everywere. Blessings to all Israel

(17)
Gloria Cohen 8 / 20 / 2005,
August 20, 2005 12:00 AM

GUSH KATIF

ALMIGHTY G-D, HASHEM,is with HIS people
of GUSH KATIF and all of ISRAEL.We may not understand it all,Have no fear,just
know that HASHEM IS G-d and that HE is
in Comtrol of GUSH KATIF and all of ISRAEL, and all that is.
I am Israelit, A JEW.
I PRAY FOR THE PEACE OF JERUSALEM,FOR
ISRAEL!
I LOVE YOU!

(16)
mark,
August 19, 2005 12:00 AM

my prayers ares strong for you

i am praying fervently, believing GOD will restore not only your houses but your hearts...i am guilty for not praying more often and earlier....i believe there is something greater than peace for you...MAY YOU PERSERVERE and the lord will answer YOUR PLEAS

(15)
Anonymous,
August 19, 2005 12:00 AM

My Heart is with you!!!

I'm from the north of the country under the Golan Hights.
My heart is with you and all that had to leave there houses after 30 years!!!
My heart is broken and i hope that at least it'll worse the tragedy of leaving the land there.
Lets hope (it's hard) that it'll bring us peace with out terror.
Hashem is with you all at this hard time and with all Israel.

(14)
Shira Lee Jackson,
August 19, 2005 12:00 AM

Your Courage is inspiring !

Your homes,your farms and your communties have been taken away, yet you have shown such unbelievable strength in your peaceful resistance. I pray Hashem will bless you with happiness and continued strength in the coming days/weeks ahead.I would also like to say that i have huge respect for the soldiers who in this heartbreaking situation have shown such sesitivity for those they have the gutrenching job of removing.my prayers are with you all in Israel.I hope we will all remember that unity and Hashem are all we have to help us survive any threat to our nation.

(13)
ostroy,
August 18, 2005 12:00 AM

much appreciated

Thank you Toby for sending us this very insightful, and heartrendering article

(12)
Shira Levin,
August 18, 2005 12:00 AM

The final days of Jewish settlements in Gush Katif

My heart is broken and I feel much pain.
While watching the news reports I felt
anger and at times yelled at the TV. Other times I broke down and cried. As
I read this article tears came to my eyes. I am feeling much grief. G-d's
word has been trampled underfoot and profaned. He will judge those who divide His land. Ultimately, G-d's will and promises shall prevail. Let
G-d be true and every man a liar.

(11)
Mary Hogan,
August 18, 2005 12:00 AM

Wow

Perhaps this is the final test.

(10)
Ben,
August 18, 2005 12:00 AM

Did YOU Call White House Today?

202 456 1111
Did YOU call the White House today to deamdn the President STOP PRESSURING ISRAEL while the PAlestinians to this day have not started disarming and arresting the terrorists!! And more potently of course, Tehilim (Psalms) 79 and 83

(9)
Sheila Rinde,
August 18, 2005 12:00 AM

Support in Northern California

We in Palo Alto California are surrounded by communities in Silicon Valley and we surround all of you with love concern are heartfelt prayers and blessings. We are all with all of you in heart and soul. All of you are with us 24-7. We send you our love and bless you with the blessings of the Kohanim. You should be a light to all of us in these times before the Redemption. All ofyou are celebrated for your Faith, trust, courage and the ahavas Yisrael/love for fellow Jews you enbody. We are all glued to our computers, have formed special Tehillim/psalms groups and have davened special prayers for all of you and for all Klal Yisrael.
We love you all. We are all here for you. G-d bless you in all needs -- spiritual and material.

(8)
Anonymous,
August 18, 2005 12:00 AM

How appropriate that at this time, the saddest season of the year, yet again Jews are being sent into galus/exile. Being divinely planned, as everything in this world is, perhaps g-d executed it precisely at this time so that (hopefully) we would get the message and finally take action to end our long and painful exile. We know that it's dependant on our actions, now is the time to act upon it.

(7)
Ashley,
August 17, 2005 12:00 AM

Huge Mistake

I know this disengagement is a huge mistake for countless reasons. One being the so called 'palestinian' terrorists are already celebrating their victory, If I was in their shoes I would also view Israel as running away and that terrorism has worked. There will be no peace because of this - infact it will only create more terrorism as they try to make us give up more land using terrorist tactics.
Another is this land was promised to us in the Bible and the settlers have employed 'palestinians' and cultivated desert into a great place. All the 'palestinians' have done is attacked these religous kind people.
The scariest thing is once they withdrawl - and sharon realises the huge mistake they have made - they cannot go back and re-take the settlements, they have lost them. They will have sadistic terrorists whose only goal is too kill Jews and kick them out of the whole of Israel closer to Israel's borders than before.
The left wing are naive and blind and don't realise the huge mistake they are supporting. What they are doing now is the exact same as the Jews of Germany appeasing the Nazi's before they are sent to the Ghettos and the concentration camps.

(6)
Kay,
August 17, 2005 12:00 AM

Thank you

I have been so moved by your articles ~ this article no different ~ I feel the pain.

(5)
Anonymous,
August 17, 2005 12:00 AM

In Tears

I read this in tears. This is a sad time for the Jewish Nation. We must be strong and unite in the faith tat just like we have overcome losing the Old City 50 years ago and were returned it 19 years later, we may once again be rejoicing in Gush Katif again. Now is the time for all of us in Exile/Golus to come home and show support in unity to our nation. May we all be worthy to see Ingathering of the Exiles/Kibbutz Galiyot soon.

(4)
Anonymous,
August 17, 2005 12:00 AM

We are together!

I am baal-tshuva from former Soviet Union(machshemo-vezihoro). I with my friends want to tell you - we are together with you in this critical time!
We vill pray to Ha-shem, learn more Tora, doing mizvot and ask Him to send Mashiach! Know yourself and tell others-
we are together!

(3)
Aaron Lerner,
August 17, 2005 12:00 AM

Al Aleh Ani Bociah

If in modern times we wonder what it was like to see the Destruction of the Temple now we gat a glimpse. Like countless Jewish Generations before us we are "privileged" to behold devastation wrought on our people (unfortunately this time it is by our people as well). I was wondering how the prophet Jeremiah felt when he said the words “I am the man that has seen the affliction by the rod of His wrath.’” I think now I understand a little. G-d’s ways are all just but I have a few questions for him. I want to now how he can call upon us to be comforted (as is the name of this Holy Shabbat – Shabbat Nachmau) when we behold His destruction with our very eyes.

(2)
Yocheved,
August 17, 2005 12:00 AM

May Hashem protect you

im so sorry and sad for all those in Gush Katif who suffered so atrosously. i really feel for you. i hope Hashem watches over you and protects you and all of Klal Yisrael and we see the Geula very soon.

(1)
Anonymous,
August 17, 2005 12:00 AM

Aish is apolitical?

How can Aish consider itself apolitical when it repeatedly publishes these sentimental stories about the settlements?

I want to know about the concept of "sin" due to Adam and Eve eating from the Tree of Knowledge. The Christian concept of sin revolves around the fall of the man and the "original sin." Does Judaism view it the same way?

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

Adam and Eve were punished according to their actions. In other words, God laid down the conditions for Adam and Eve to live in the garden, provided they would not eat from the Tree of Knowledge. However, if they were to eat from that tree they would be punished by experiencing death. (If they had not eaten from the tree, they would have remained immortal.)

This sets down the basic principle in Judaism of Reward and Punishment. Basic to this is that every person has the choice of doing good or bad. When a person chooses "good" – as defined by God – he is able to draw close to God. In other words, every individual has a chance to "gain salvation" through his own actions.

My understanding of Christianity, however, is that the Original Sin has infected all of mankind to the point where individuals are incapable of achieving salvation through their own initiative. Man is "totally depraved" and therefore his only hope of salvation is through the cross.

This belief is contrary to the teachings of Judaism. From the Torah perspective, an individual does not need to rely on anyone else to atone for them. In Judaism, sins can be "erased" altogether by sincere repentance and a firm resolution never to repeat the mistakes.

For more on this, read "Their Hollow Inheritances" by Michael Drazin – www.drazin.com

Yahrtzeit of Moses in 1273 BCE (Jewish year 2488), on the same day of his birth 120 years earlier. (Consequently, "May you live to 120" has become a common Jewish blessing.) Moses was born in Egypt at a time when Pharaoh had decreed that all Jewish baby boys be drowned in the Nile River. His mother set him afloat in a reed basket, where he was -- most ironically -- discovered by Pharaoh's daughter and brought to Pharaoh's palace to be raised. When Moses matured, his heart turned to aid the Jewish people; he killed an Egyptian who was beating a Jew, and he fled to Midian where he married and had two sons. God spoke to Moses at the Burning Bush, instructing him to return to Egypt and persuade Pharaoh to "let My people go." Moses led the Jews through the ten plagues, the Exodus, and the splitting of the Red Sea. Seven weeks later, the Jews arrived at Mount Sinai and received the Torah, the only time in human history that an entire nation experienced Divine revelation. Over the next 40 years, Moses led the Jews through wanderings in the desert, and supervised construction of the Tabernacle. Moses died before being allowed to enter the promised Land of Israel. He is regarded as the greatest prophet of all time.

Lack of gratitude is at the root of discontent. In order to be consistently serene, we must master the attribute of being grateful to the Creator for all His gifts. As the Torah (Deuteronomy 26:11) states, "Rejoice with all the good the Almighty has given you." This does not negate our wanting more. But it does mean that we have a constant feeling of gratitude since as long as we are alive, we always have a list of things for which to be grateful.

[Just before Moses' death] God said to him, "This is the Land that I promised to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob" (Deuteronomy 34:4).

The Midrash says that Moses pleaded to live long enough to be able to enter the Promised Land. He surrendered his soul only after God instructed him to enter Heaven and inform the Patriarchs that the Israelites had come to their Land and that God had indeed fulfilled His promise to give the Land of Israel to their descendants. To fulfill God's will was dearer to Moses than his craving to enter the Land.

It is only natural to cling to life, and the thought of leaving this world is depressing. However, if a person develops the attitude that he lives only in order to fulfill God's will, then life and death are no longer polar opposites, because he lives to do the will of God, and when that will requires that he leave this world, he will be equally obedient.

The seventh day of Adar is the anniversary of Moses' death. He wanted to enter the Promised Land so that he could fulfill the commandments and thereby have a new opportunity to fulfill the Divine wish. He surrendered his soul willingly when he was told that there was a special commandment for him to perform, one that could only be achieved after leaving this earth.

We refer to Moses as Rabbeinu, our teacher. He not only taught us didactically, but by means of everything he did in his life - and by his death, as well.

Today I shall...

try to dedicate my life to fulfilling the will of God, so that even when that will contradicts my personal desires, I can accept it with serenity.

With stories and insights,
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